Paralysed by a rare disease at the age of 10, Mouna Abbassy learnt to draw upon her inner strength early on. Fast-forward 22 years and the now fully rehabilitated Dubai resident is the proud founder of the cosmetics company Izil Beauty.
Izil, meaning "pure" in Berber, develops and sells products created with argan oil from the Atlas Mountains in Morocco, – from where Abbassy originally hails. In France this month, she scooped the top regional accolade at the Cartier Women's Initiative Awards. Picturesque Deauville was the setting for the event, which took place alongside the Women's Forum for the Economy & Society.
Cartier's annual competition recognised seven business women from six regions as outstanding entrepreneurs in their field. Since 2006, in association with McKinsey & Co and INSEAD business school, the luxury brand has identified, supported and encouraged projects by more than 44 laureates. Now in its ninth year, Cartier shortlisted 18 female-led start-ups from more than 1,700 applications. The prize: a year's professional mentoring and US$20,000 (Dh73,458).
For the Middle East, Abbassy triumphed over Sarah Hawilo, chief executive of SerVme from Lebanon and Eman Hylooz, chief executive of Abjjad, from Jordan. We caught up with the beauty entrepreneur, who revealed how her strong connection to her Berber roots helped her build an organic business in the Emirates and generate jobs for her indigenous community.
Congratulations Mouna. What does the win mean to you?
Thank you, it means a lot. It’s a reward for the journey I’ve taken over the past two years, and I dedicate this to all the Berber women working with me and handling this rare and precious resource. Today, argan oil is known everywhere in the world, and it is due to their labour. To receive a year of coaching will be amazing because it costs a fortune, and no start-up can afford that. The $20,000 is wonderful and will really help us grow too, but it will disappear quickly, given how we’re positioned today. In all, the Cartier award has given my business more credibility and made it easier for me to ask for help. So, all I can say is thank you very, very much.
How did your Berber roots set you on the path to founding a beauty company?
I grew up with Berber women who prepared their own beauty recipes at home, using natural ingredients such as argan oil, black soap, rose and rhassoul clay. That’s how I came to develop an all-natural beauty range. My grandmother’s beauty secrets were so simple and yet so effective. Berber women have amazing skin and it’s down to the argan oil. Modern life seems to have set us incredibly high, and distorted, beauty standards. There’s such a great pressure on women to look a certain way and products on the market are too confusing – with the amount of chemical ingredients they contain. So, we wanted to create and promote a type of “pure” beauty with our company and that’s how the business was established. We want women to feel confident about themselves and look beautiful.
What’s special about argan oil?
The tree is found only in certain parts of Morocco such as the Atlas Mountains. It grows wild and doesn’t plant well – that’s why it’s called the miracle tree – it just appears. The tree produces nuts, which we collect when they have fallen naturally and they are then dried in the sun to remove the outer shell. The inner shell is incredibly hard and the only way to crack it is by hand with a stone. That’s how the Berber women do it – one-by-one. You then either roast the nut, to get the culinary argan oil, or as in our case, grind it manually – and often using a cold press – to extract the oil. It’s a long, labour-intensive process for every single nut.
Why choose Dubai to build your business?
I moved here in 2005 to work for multinational skincare companies. Whenever I would travel back to Morocco, everyone would ask me to bring back argan oil and hammam products. The opportunity presented itself and I was there at the right time. The UAE had lots of hammams starting up, so there was a definite need for the products and that was great news for us – my husband, brother and I. My research told me that the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Asia are the fastest growing beauty industries and that’s why we’re still here on the ground.
Having won the CWIA, any plans to expand your range to hair and make-up?
We wanted to start small with nine great products that we knew would work. And for the past year, we’ve been working on new ones, meaning new hair, face and body products, which will be available before the end of the year. The plan is to reach about 25 products in different categories by 2016. We have pop-up shops across the UAE – from Ras Al Khaimah to Dubai and Abu Dhabi, but one day hope we can afford stores in places like the Mall of the Emirates and The Dubai Mall. We’re also now in two spas, Sultana beauty salon in Barsha and Le Rouge in Abu Dhabi. Hopefully, more spas will follow next year too.
Tell me how your business has directly affected the Berber community?
There’s a widow called Khadija, she’s about 45 years old and has four children. Left to bring up the children she got into agriculture – growing and selling products until she was able to join one of the cooperatives in Essaouira. They invested in literacy classes for her and her children and now, she’s basically taking care of the whole family by extracting argan oil. It’s a sustainable revenue, not an unpredictable one, which has made her literate and guaranteed the future education of her children.
What is the best advice you could give aspiring entrepreneurs in the UAE?
I’d say that anything is possible if you want it enough. When I was 10 years old I was completely paralysed by a rare virus I couldn’t walk or do anything. That experience taught me a great deal and although I still suffer daily muscle pain, I am much stronger inside and out. I no longer take anything for granted, not walking, breathing, nothing. We have to use the gifts God gave us and I strongly believe nothing is impossible. Forget “who you know” – it’s “what you know” and you have the power to do it all yourself.
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The winning product: star buys from izil beauty
• Multi-purpose Argan Oil
This rich concentration of vitamin E, antioxidants, and fatty acids, including Omega 3, 6 and 9, allows the pure oil to re-hydrate skin and nourish hair. Dh210
• Golden Glow Face Mask
Organic ingredients include saffron, honey, argan oil, amino acids, peptides and vitamins. The mask locks in moisture and tightens pores, while the argan oil works on suppleness and elasticity. Dh140
• Re-Mineralizing Body Mask
Created with rhassoul clay, argan oil and Damask rose, this mask is packed with magnesium, potassium and calcium. These components remineralise and cleanse the skin. Dh95
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The other runners-up
Eman Hylooz, founder of Abjjad, Jordan.
Elevator pitch:
My company is a social network for readers, authors and publishers of Arabic books. It’s a place where everyone can share their love of literature and we currently have around 160,000 books of every genre.
Leap of faith:
I had thought for years about quitting my job and starting a business before I did it. I set up the company because of my passion – I’m an avid reader and I’m passionate about all books, especially Arabic literature. Therefore, I decided to do something related to that and use the skills I had gained previously as a software engineering and digital marketeer.
Top trending books:
Historical literature is very popular right now. Any fictional novels based around history are hugely popular too. Philosophy books and anything related to self-help are also big at the moment.
Must read:
Blue Elephant by Ahmed Mourad – it's been made into a movie and is a particularly good read. It's a great page-turner. • www.abjjad.com
Sarah Hawilo, CEO of serVme, Lebanon.
Elevator pitch:
Restaurants, bars and clubs actually have a lot of trouble understanding who their customers are. We provide them with that data analytics software. For example, customer profiles are created letting the venue know that, ‘Sarah came to dine at 8pm, booked with 5 friends, celebrated a birthday, had these allergies and spent this much, etc’. The information can then be used to personalise the customer’s return visits and their experience.
Best advice:
Persevere non-stop, never give up. Always think positively and think “how can I produce valuable work and help other people?”
Something gained:
The Cartier Women’s Initiative Awards mean so much to me because they touch, inspire and empower women. That in turn allows us – the finalists – to benefit from the mentorship provided and pass it on to other young Arabwomen, in the technology space in my case – which I am very passionate about. Let’s challenge the status quo, let’s help one another and support amazing tenacious women. It is possible to have it all, raise a family and lead, being successful in business.
• The Cartier Women's Initiative Awards will celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2016. A ceremony will held on February 23 and 24 at the Women's Forum in Dubai. Visit www.cartierwomensinitiative.com
rduane@thenational.ae
